Get the Best Rates on Your Hotel Room With These Simple Tips (2023)

FAQs

How do you get a reduced rate at a hotel? ›

If it's feasible, wait until the day you need the hotel room to book it. The later in the day, the better. After 4 p.m., hotels know the odds of selling a room are pretty slim, so you're more likely to get an even lower rate. On average, the same-day rate of a hotel room is 10% cheaper than booking in advance.

However, if you are trying to find last minute hotel deals, the best time to book a hotel is after 4pm. This is when hotels will drop their prices to entice travelers to fill their rooms for the night. For those who are dedicated budget hunters, the best time to book hotel for lowest prices is after 8pm.

Once you find the lowest available price at the hotel you want to visit, call the hotel's reservation desk. Many hotels will meet or beat the best internet rate when you book with them. They'd much rather skip the commission to the travel site and book your stay directly.

Essentially all you need to do is divide the total sales price by the number of rooms to arrive at a PPR (Price Per Room) value.

15/5 rule: When a guest is within 15 feet their presence should be acknowledged through some means whether a smile or head nod. Similarly, when a guest is within 5 feet they should be greeted in an appropriate manner whether that be a “hello”, “good morning”, or “good evening.”

Advantages of Booking a Hotel Directly

You can often find better rates by booking directly, too — a concern for budget-conscious travelers. By calling a hotel directly, you find out about any specials perks or packages they have available. In some cases, you can get a better room for the same amount of money.

Since hotels are always aiming to maximize their occupancy rate, many will decrease their rates if they aren't meeting their expected targets. That's why you'll often see hotels dropping their prices a few days before a check-in date or on the day of arrival.

The research shows that the lowest average daily rate (ADR) for domestic accommodations tends to occur on Mondays, when travelers can save more than 15% compared with booking and staying on the most expensive day, Friday.

What is hotels secret price? ›

The “secret price” is a discount available on some hotels to any Rewards member. If you're logged into your account while searching, you'll see the discounted price when you search for hotels.

You usually need to speak to a designated person such as the 'on-property revenue manager'. Often, though, entirely apart from room rate discounts — major chain hotels try to enforce pricing uniformity — you may be able to obtain add-ons like upgrades, breakfast, late check-out and on-property discounts.

Though it's best to phone ahead, you can negotiate on arrival. If you walk in without a reservation and are unhappy with the rate you are quoted, tell the desk clerk and ask if there is a lower rate or offer a rate that you are willing to pay.

Most hotels use revenue management software and other algorithms to automatically update their hotel room rates. If you search different dates for the same location you will notice that hotel prices can go up and down from day to day.

The 10 and 5 rule is a simple guideline that is widely used in the hospitality industry. The rule dictates that when a staff member is 10 feet from a guest, the staff smiles and makes direct eye contact, and when they are within five feet, the staff verbally greets the guest.

They refer to their customers as guests. Cast members are trained to acknowledge each guest with a smile anytime they come within 10 feet of that person.

Under the 80/20 Tip Rule, you can only apply a tip credit to an employee if they spend at least 80% of their time in category 1, and no more than 20%, or 30 consecutive minutes, in category 2. Meanwhile, no tip credit can be applied to any work in category 3.

2) the delayed check-in times (3PM or 4PM) are to allow housekeeping enough time to get all the rooms clean. If there are enough available rooms, most hotels let you check in early, but they don't want you to ASSUME that just because you show up early you can check in.

Some hotels are playing it even more safe by removing room 420 altogether from their room numbers. It´s kind of a superstitious move – the same way hotels went mad some decades ago and removed level 13 and room number 13. Other hotels have been even more creative with their solution, labelling room 420 as “419 + 1”.

Reservations must be cancelled seventy two (72 hours) hotel time, prior to your arrival date, in order to avoid a one (1) night full room cancellation fee. If reservations are cancelled less than 72 hours before the arrival date, you will may be charged the full room charge plus taxes.

Is it cheaper to book a hotel online or walk in? ›

If you are looking for a last minute deal, it may be cheaper to walk in and ask for any discounts or specials they may have available. On the other hand, if you plan ahead and book your hotel online or over the phone, you can often find great deals that will save you money compared to walking in without a reservation.

Best time to book a hotel on the day of your stay

Prices usually plummet around 4 pm as hotels work to entice customers to their empty rooms. If you're bold enough to wait until after 8 pm, you'll find prices probably reduce by another 5-10% again.

Look on any hotel website, and you'll likely pay more to stay on a Saturday night than on a Tuesday or a Wednesday. Most hotels see more travelers and book more rooms over the weekend than during the week. This is great for weekday business travelers but not so great for weekend vacationers.

“On average, same-day hotel rates are 10% less than booking the day before and then typically drop dramatically around 4 p.m,” Shank added. “If you book at 8 p.m., you can usually save another 5-10%.”

In short, remember that getting the best deal on a hotel room comes down to a few basic rules: Make your bookings on a more favorable day of the week (try Tuesday or the weekend), try for last minute if you can, travel off-season whenever possible, and avoid checking in on Friday.

It's Cheaper to Book Direct

When you book directly with the hotel, there are no hidden fees. Using third-party booking services has additional fees that you may on top of the rate. Online travel agents also charge a commission, which could be up to 20% of the booking, from the hotel.

Best available rate (BAR)

The best available rate, or BAR, is the most affordable rate that can be offered to the guest. There are two types of BAR rates, a dynamic rate, or a daily rate. A dynamic rate is typically a standard rate based on the number of rooms available.

A PIP, or property improvement plan, is an action plan designed to bring a hotel property into compliance with the latest brand standards. PIPs are a fairly regular occurrence for hotel owners. They happen every six to 10 years.

What does RPI mean in hotels? ›

Revenue Generating Index (RGI) or RevPAR Index (RPI) – A metric used to determine whether a property is achieving its fair share of revenue compared to a specific group of hotels (i.e. a competitive set).

Sometimes you can get a cheaper rate if you call the hotel directly. Look at dates, room type and price on-line and then call the hotel to see if you can get better rate or upgraded room. Prices are usually cheaper in advance, but another major pricing force is holiday/vacation timing.

The ideal amount of time to book a hotel room is only 15 days before your trip, according to a 2021 NerdWallet study. Looking at more than 2,500 hotel room rates between 2019 and 2021, NerdWallet found rates were about 13% cheaper when booked 15 days before compared to four months before.

The best day of the week to book your hotel at the lowest rate is Monday for domestic travel and Tuesday for international travel, according to travel site Expedia.

It's Cheaper to Book Direct

By booking directly, you could save this amount, or know that the full amount is going to the hotel for your stay. Hotels tend to offer the best rates when you book directly with them and it's a great incentive. It benefits both you and the hotel when you make a reservation directly.

Expedia. Those looking for steeply discounted hotel bookings should use the Expedia app. It comes with exclusive deals you may not find when booking on its website. This includes deals up to 40% off as well as the app-only Expedia Rewards rate of 2 points per dollar.

While your hotel's management usually won't be able to see the contents of your communications, they can easily find out what websites you visit and how much time you spend browsing the Internet.

While it's almost always cheaper to book a room last-minute, how much cheaper is it, really? Turns out, though a bit cheaper, don't expect the bargain bin here. Rooms average 13% less when booked last-minute than booked four months in advance.

Most extended stay guests book accommodations for at least one week. This is because the average nightly rate is discounted when guests stay longer.